>> all right, new york. it's 9:00. even if you're not working today, you have to get up, because you're just lazy if you're not. 41 degrees. up to 45 and sunny. all right. now that we have christmas out of the way, new year's eve is almost here. have you got any plans? why not grab a bottle of champagne, pull up a chair, because the big party kicks off right here tonight on cnn. anderson cooper and kathy griffin once again hosting cnn's "new year's eve celebration." you never know what you're going to get. always worth tuning in. other places you can watch, you kind of know what you're going to get. you never know on cnn. >> generally the blooper reel the following year. >> the party starts 11:00 p.m. right here on cnn. we are done for the day. three hours and we're done. cnn newsroom starts right now. ali and i will head to the mall. >> all right, happy shopping to you. and good morning everyone in the united states. i'm in washington today. kyra phillips have the week off

as these holidays wind down. the president yial campaign sean is heating up. one week from tomorrow, the iowa caucuses will mark the first formal votes in the 2012 race. right now, it's too close to call, statistically speaking. according to a poll from the american research group, ron paul, mitt romney, and newt gingrich are locked in a three-way statistical tie. you can see it there. 21, 20, 19% apiece. paul steinhauser is in des moines with more on this three-way battle. and no clear front-runner at least for iowa, paul. >> reporter: no clear front-runner. and that poll you just showed from arg came out on friday. the most receipt polling we have of people likely to take part in that caucus on january 30. it also indicates with just a week to go 1-10 still say they haven't made up their minds. and a sizeable amount are saying, i'm backing this candidate or that candidate, but i may change my mind. three-way traffic jam, i guess

you could say, for the top spot. ron paul, though, and here is the story, look at this, this is this morning's "des moines register." could ron paul win? that's what a lot of people are talking about. however, we have seen his poll numbers climb over the last month or two in iowa. also nationally. he made a bid four years ago, and he got about one in 10 republican voters. this i'm around, time around, i different. >> let's talk about iowa. it's not a predictor historically of who ends up being the nominee. why is it important for candidates? >> reporter: because it's first. and that is the key. this is the first state to have a contest in the primary and caucus calendar, and you're right, it doesn't always crown the victor, the gop nominee. but it does weed people out. and some of the candidates who maybe might be in single digits right now in the polling if they do not do well here in iowa, they may not make it onto new hampshire and south carolina and then florida. so it has a good history of weeding out a lot of candidates. >> all right.

mike huckabee won the iowa caucuses last year but didn't make the nomination. he has an interesting theory about the weather and who it may favor. tell us more about that. >> reporter: you're right. huk huckabee knows a lot about the iowa caucuses. he did win here four years ago but did not go on to win the nomination. john mccain did. another example of how iowa didn't always crown the winner. but take a listen to what he said on the sunday talk shows. >> if the weather is good, mitt romney is in better shape. if the weather is bad, and it's real tough to get out, ron paul will win. >> reporter: and here is why, because ron paul's supporters here in iowa are very enthusiastic and energetic. they'll come out on a cold snowy night. maybe some of the other backers won't. the weather right now, very mild and sunny. >> who's campaigning today? there's only one candidate out there campaigning. a little more than a week before

these caucuses in iowa. >> reporter: right. because it is the federal holiday. only one candidate, that is rick santorum, the former pennsylvania senator. he's going to go pheasant hunting later today with what his campaign says are prominent conservative republicans. >> thank you, paul. tune in a week from tomorrow for the country's first real votes and the candidates' first true test. america's choice 2012, live coverage of the iowa caucuses. that begins tuesday night, january 3, 7:00 p.m. eastern. as for the president, president obama spent a quiet christmas with family and friends in hawaii. earlier in the day, the first family, you see them there, attended church services at a marine corps base. the president and first lady greeted hundreds of service members and their families, posed for photos, and signed a few autographs. all right. to the middle east now. a suicide car bomber in iraq got

through six security checkpoints before setting off an explosion at the interior ministry today. at least five people were killed, and 39 wounded. major instability once again in iraq. it happened on the heels of a meeting between iraq's prime minister and some security officials, where security instability topped the agenda ironically. explosions killed close to 70 people in baghdad last week alone. speaking of explosions and violence and bloodshed, the united nations says that it condemns the christmas day bombings that rocked nigeria. a string of blasts tore through churches in five cities, leaving dozens dead or wounded. there were similar attacks on last year's christmas season in nigeria. zain verjee is in london with more. any claim of responsibility for these deadly bombings against churches in nigeria, zain? >> there's a group called boca

haram that operates in nigeria. that translates to western education is sinful. this group has been around for a while. but what's worrying is the attacks have become a lot more coordinated. they are kind of loosely structure around the abdulmutallataliban, that kind of a model. and they want to impose some kind of sharia law on nigeria. this one the second christmas in a row, and a lot of smaller attacks in the year. but there's been a lot of conflict with the security and police forces. and they want to ignite a kind of sectarian violence between christians and muslims. >> is this turning it into sort of a wider conflict in nigeria? >> what a lot of people say is that they are in a position to do that, because they have

successfully been extremely divisive in some parts of the country. some areas have seen a lot of christian-muslim violence. but the majority of the country is actually pretty evenly split between christians and muslims. and they are also -- they do live in relative peace and stability with one another. about you th but this group has a greater capacity, that seems to have improved its level of coordination, and the fear is that they could ignite that. but the majority of nigerians that have been interviewed say that they don't want to have this kind of religious sectar n sectarianism going on in nigeria. >> zain verjee, we'll speak to you later for more news. now we poke about the middle east. we were in africa with nigeria. but how about globally? on the internet, everything is worldwide. there's a hacking group known as anonymous, and it is at it again. it claims it hacked a global intelligence company's website and released the names of

corporate subscribers, along with information linked though thousands of credit cards. it is stratfor.com. bank of america, lockheed martin, and the defense department are a few of its clients. this is a think tank that says it that can provide security analysis. barbara star is joining us from washington to explain the possible fallout. first of all, why did anonymous say that it targeted stratfor in particular? >> well, you know, this is a hacking group that has made these kinds of attacks before, cyber attacks, that has the u.s. military and the u.s. intelligence community so worried. usually when anonymous comes out, the group, and says they have hacked, they get what they want. they get in. they are successful. they released a statement saying in fact that they had gone after this subscriber data information on 4,000 credit cards as well as stratfor's private client list. and then there was a posting on

another website called anti-sek, a web-based collaboration with activist groups such as anonymous. right now the u.s. government says they see no impact from this hacking event. it is a private company. but this is the kind of information that stratfor publishes that government clients very much want to see -- government agencies want to see more about threats and risks around the world. that's what stratfor does. it's big business. everybody is just on a little bit of edge wondering what anonymous has planned next. >> well, even the vice president of intelligence for stratfor is saying, look, once this group has its sights set on a website, generally speaking, it succeeds. but i imagine there must be worry about other possible hacking operations, because anonymous itself is saying that it's going to go after other sites as well, barbara. >> yeah. that's exactly right. will they go after, you know,

other sites? there's a sort of cyber threat out there of more attacks over the coming christmas and new year's holiday. are they going to go after government websites? are they going to go after some of the -- you know, the classified information? the question is, you know, do the government websites now have the kind of encryption and protection and fire walls that can really keep these hackers out? it's not always the case. some of the hackers have been very successful, and some of it is not very high-tech. you just have to look at the bradley manning case, where he downloaded a bunch of information. it's a lot of concern right now. the pentagon will tell you, cyber tech, cyber warfare rapidly moving up the scale of the threats that they worry about. >> well, for a company that says it can evaluate risk, for it to be the victim of a hacking group, isn't the best pr for it, but there you have it. thank you barbara starr. we'll speak to you later with more. we'll take a break now. a team of outside observers

heads to syria today. activists say they could find scenes like this. this is as reports of more bloodshed, violence, and part of an entire city is under siege. we're talking about it in a few minutes. and we'll show you a post office hit on christmas day with fire, graffiti, and bullets. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] you are a business pro. lord of the carry-on. sovereign of the security line. you never take an upgrade for granted. and you rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle. and go. you can even take a full-size or above. and still pay the mid-size price. i deserve this. [ male announcer ] you do, business pro. you do.

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an activist in syria says

snipers in some parts of the country are shooting at, quote, anything and everything, as video shows tanks rolling through the streets of homs, one of the flashpoint areas if that country in the anti-regime movement. it's all part of a renewed government crackdown opposition sources say that has reportly left more than 20 people dead so far today alone. well, as is the case with many pieces of video from syria, this has emerged on youtube. cnn cannot verify that video. we haven't been allowed into syria since july. but it hit the internet hours before a team of outside observers is set to arrive in the country to monitor what's going on. blake hamshell is the managing editor of "foreign policy" magazine is and is joining us from washington, d.c. so, blake, these arab league

observers, i suppose the question is will the syrian government allow them to some of these flashpoint areas such as homs? and if they do, what's the best that anyone can hope for as far as how effective they might be? >> well, i think the syrian government is going to watch them very closely, and they'll be doing things like providing security, which is really another way of saying minders. it's a real open question, hala, whether the arab league observer mission was designed to succeed and stop the violence or whether it was designed to fail so that the arab league can say, look, this isn't working, and kick it upstairs to the security council and move toward harsher action. >> i think many people look at what's happening in syria and say, ok, we know the regime is brutal. we know part of this opposition movement is starting to arm itself. we know it's a desperate situation. we know all of these things. but what can be done? >> well, what activists tell me is that they want some kind of

buffer zone in the mountains to the west of the country so that more soldiers can defect and protect the protest movement. what they hope is that if the international community says, look, this is a safe zone, and we will protect you, there will be mass defections and people will move westward into those areas and the regime will collapse. now maybe that's more of a hope than a plan. but it's i think the best idea anyone's got going right now. >> so if it's the best idea that anyone's got going right now, this buffer zone that would allow for more defections from the military, what scenario in the future? do you have a civil conflict that just explodes throughout the country? >> well, you know, people like to throw around terms like civil war and full-blown civil war. you know, i don't really like to debate those kind of terms. i think what we'll see is we'll see continued protests all throughout the country creeping closer to the power centers in damasc damascus. the economy is getting worse.

companies can't pay their employees. it's a question whether the government will be able to pay these kind of sectarian gangs that go around attacking people. the hope, i think, by activists is that the economic situation will drive more people into the arms of the opposition. but it's not clear which way it will go. >> and as we see some of these attacks from armed opposition defecting soldiers, et cetera, what we're seeing here, by the way, blake, are images of the aftermath of a twin suicide bombing in damascus. and that's very unusual in syria. >> yeah. and there's a lot of suspicion from the opposition camp that this was something staged by the regime itself. they point to the fact that the regime hasn't released the names of all the victims, and they blamed al qaeda within 10 minutes of the bombing. you know, i think this is certainly something that the regime is capable of, but there's no evidence that it did so itself. >> all right.

and it's going to be france asking for these observers in homs today, not tomorrow. we'll see how it plays out. always appreciate your analysis. >> thank you, hala. a group of south korean citizens are now in north korea. they passed through the did i militaryized zone to pay their respects to kim jong il. a former first lady is leading that group. her husband won a nobel prize for trying to bring peace to the two koreas. the civilian trip did get the go-ahead from seoul, but there's no official cell gagz. -- delegation. back here in the united states, eight days and counting. with the iowa caucuses barely a week away, a poll shows no clear winner. what can candidates do to win the states? our political players weigh in. then -- >> well, when i got to the

street, it was much more of a rich man's game. not that i was rich, but, i mean, it was designed for banks or insurance companies or railroads or public utilities. and taking stock and talking shop. this stockbroker is still on the job. i'll let you guess how old he is. we'll share his wealth of experience coming up. oh, i'm sorry. first, the thought that counts, right, unless it comes with a gift receipt. the national retail federations americans will set a record this year for the value of gifts they'll return after the holidays. how much do you think we'll return this year? $26 billion, $36 billion, $46 billion? we'll have the answer for you, and i think we really are going to a break now, everyone. and i will see you on the other side.

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well, many of us will return gifts after the holidays. so we asked you, how much do you think americans will return this year? the answer is c. it's expected that shoppers will return a record-breaking $46 billion worth of gifts this year. of course, people aren't just returning things. they are buying things as well. and this is crucial for the american economy. so much of it depends on consumer spending. analysts say the monday after christmas could be the third biggest shopping day of the year. allison kosik is live outside of macy's herald's square in new york city. and, you know, it was a great sort of post thanksgiving day. but then it kind of petered out. so today is very important, allison.

>> reporter: it is important. and it was interesting that you noted that those -- the people will be bringing back their purchases today. but one thing to keep in mind is they are probably going to walk out with other bags. that's what retailers are hoping for. in fact, the national retail federation says 70% of people who go to return gifts today are actually going to buy something else, and that's what retailers are banking on. and you said it. that black friday, those black friday sales, were exceptionally high. and that's also why you are seeing these returns a little higher as well. it's sort of in proportion to the number of sales. but i have certainly seen more people walk in today empty handed, and walk out with bags, because people that i talked to, some of those shoppers say they are looking for those discounts. take a listen. >> one, you get gift cards. two, it's always a discount. so you can combine the two. and it's more fun shopping for yourself. >> this is our first time here. we're hoping it's going to be something quite beneficial to our pockets from south africa.

>> and if we can't get if here, we've got to go downtown and look at the chic shops. >> reporter: and retailers are offering deep discounts, hoping to move this merchandise out, get the spring merchandise in. and consumers, hala, are taking advantage. they lined up dark and early this morning. i saw them out here at 6:00 a.m., lining up outside of stores in and around new york city. waiting to get in to catch those bargains. hala? >> all right. well, that shows dedication. guess what the last thing a store needs today is? the last thing, allison, is a strike in public transportation. so -- >> reporter: i can't even imagine that, especially in this city. >> it's not happening here, everyone. don't worry. it's happening in the united kingdom. today is the biggest retail day in the uk, like black friday in

the u.s. not but london shoppers are facing delays because of a 24-hour strike. union drivers for the railway network are upset over compensation for holiday work so they are not working. zain verjee is joining us from london. how bad is it >> it's pretty bad, hala. let me tell you. but the shoppa holics of this country will not be swayed. 5.6 million people, hala, got into their cars and they drove themselves into town, into the city, just so that they could shop today. on boxing day. just take a look at some of the video. this was 6:00 in the morning on oxford street. and at selfridge's. and i just want to show you in a moment the total stampede that happened as soon as the doors were open. there they go. crazed shoppers. i tried to get in there with them, but unfortunately i did have to come to work. it's not too far from the bureau here.

but a lot of people, about 2,000 or so, were lined up outside of selfridge's. and selfridge's actually reported its biggest first ever hour of trade on monday. and then i was looking at some other numbers. there's a big group that represents a lot of different high street and retail stores, and they reported profits of $23 million in just the first few hours. so the strike is a real pain for a lot of people, but the shoppers are still out there and they're going to buy stuff. look, hala, even i managed to slip away. i bought this little cassette case here, which is actually my iphone cover. and then, hal, a got this very exciting new telephone. what do you think? >> i love it. i think we should anchor the show from now on with that instead of an earpiece. >> yeah. >> very retro. where were these people running to? i like when you open the doors and everybody just goes in different directions. you need to map out where you're going, because otherwise you're kind of running around like a headless chicken.

hello? can you not hear me? >> hello? hello? can you hear me now? >> i can hear you now. we're good. >> what about now? i think it was the louie vuitton section there, but i can't be sure. i'll call if i find out. >> zain, we'll talk to you later for more on the holiday madness and other news out of the uk and europe. now, guess who won't be on the virginia's primary ballot in march? rick perry and newt gingrich. they are both out. what's worse is that gingrich lives in virginia. and was considered a front-runner. so what now? our political panel is up next.

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welcome back. you're watching cnn, checking top stories now. at least two people are dead after a suicide car bomber struck a security checkpoint right by iraq's interior security compound. dozens have died in bombings since the last u.s. combat troops left iraq just over a week ago. also, more bodies are washing ashore in the philippines after a brutal tropical storm. the number of dead now tops 1,200. also, the japanese government wasn't ready for the fukushima nuclear disaster and neither was the power company. a new interim government report is slamming the response, saying workers weren't properly trained and that the government hesitated too much when it came to people's safety after that disastrous tsunami. to politics now. we are just eight days away from the iowa caucuses, and recent polls show the race is very close for the republican presidential hopefuls.

joining us are will cain and lz granderson. thanks for being with us. so let's start with the sdaxal dead heat, and we have newt gingrich and others there tied in the new polling. let me start with you, lz. what do you think about who might win iowa? >> well, i think that the republican party is in a bit of a pickle, if you will, because it seems as if ron paul doesn't win in iowa, he at least will finish in the top three, which presents a candidate that is not someone who is going to be electable in the general election. so the worst-case scenario, i would think at this point, would be for ron paul to come out ahead and win this. and then set the tone in rhode island to have a totally incredible and i'm sure frustrating conversation for the republican party. >> let's talk about, will cain, about a possible ron paul win. what impact on the rest of the race? >> i don't think whoever wins

iowa, ron paul or rick santorum or michele bachmann or whoever, matters all that much. i think that predicting the results of iowa is turning out to be a lot like being a weather forecaster. it's one a day. in the midst of many days. and a day that's going to turn out to not be that meaningful. we always assign iowa this meaningful position because it's first, and really because it coalesces what we call a bandwagon effect. in a sense, if you win iowa, you'll do well in new hampshire and south carolina and so on, but i don't think that's going to happen this year. i think the field will remain fractured for several state primaries on into the spring. i don't see any coalescing effect at all. iowa by itself right now is a total jump ball. anyone from newt down to rick santorum has a shot at iowa. >> ok. so we know it doesn't necessarily predict the winner. will, i just want to ask you this. can it predict -- after iowa, can you expect any of the candidates polling very low right now to drop out, or would it be too soon? >> you know, people are saying

that rick perry and bachmann and santorum are putting it all in on iowa and they have to show up and do well in that state. and i think there's something to that. they have to do certainly -- they have to show up. they have to poll somewhere in the mid teens or so. but i really don't know that i'm going to see -- we're going to see the people that don't win iowa drop out. i just -- iowa by itself i don't think is an indicator of what will happen in other states. i don't think we'll see iowa force this bandwagon effect. i don't know that we'll see anyone drop out. >> now we have determined iowa isn't all that important. let's talk about virginia. i'm glad we spent two minutes on that. let's talk about virginia. lz, neither newt gingrich nor rick perry will make the ballot in virginia. they didn't reach the 10,000 signatures requirement to be on the ballot for the primary for that state. they can't wage a write-in campaign because the state prohibits write-ins. so, where does that leave gingrich? >> you know, i have to confess when i first heard the story, i

had been drinking, you know, out with friends, partying for the holidays the night before. so when i read the story, i assumed i was still fuzzy from my holiday festivities because this doesn't make any sense to me. how do you proclaim to be the best person to be the president of the united states when you can't even get your name on the ballot? in the state you live in? how people are still looking at gingrich as a viable candidate in iowa, when you know the man couldn't even get his name on the ballot in the state he lives in, and he is supposed to handle as something as complex as our comy? >> well, how much will hurt him? >> you know, because he has this ability to, you know, do a jedi mind trick if you will over the people, i don't think it's going to hurt him the way that it should. i'll put it that way. i think people are still frustrated with obama, so they'll put their energy behind anybody they think can beat obama, even though the candidates continue to show just how flawed they are. >> well, will, what do you think

about this virginia situation for gingrich? >> well, i think it's what happens when your book tour accidentally turns into a presidential campaign. we have seen that happen with herman cain as well. look, at first you look at this iowa thing and think, look, five out of seven republican nominees aren't getting on the ballot. something is amiss here. only ron paul and mitt romney can get on the ballot. but that being said, you know, four years ago, people like fred thompson got to the ballot in virginia. and dennis kucinich got in on the democratic side. so the rules are tough, but they are definitely doable. you know, gingrich not getting on the ballot, it's going to hurt. it will hurt him in prior states like iowa and new hampshire. are you going to vote for a guy who doesn't even make the ballot in later states? >> thank you. pleasure talking to you both. for the latest political news, go to our website, cnnpolitics.com. coming up, the weather outside is frightful. we'll tell you where the holiday

travellers could get stopped in their tracks. if you're flying today, y you'l want to listen in. there are some airport delays. that coming up just ahead. and when irving kahn talks, people listen. we talk with this seasoned stockbroker. he is 1 06 years old, and guess what, still on the job. his story after the break. back then, he had something more important to do. he wasn't focused on his future but fortunately, somebody else was. at usaa we provide retirement solutions for our military, veterans and their families. from investments... to life insurance... to health care options. learn more with our free usaa retirement guide. call 877-242-usaa.

he's been following the wild swings in the stock market since before the great depression, and he is still at it today. poppy har low sat down to talk shop with the 106-year-old stockbroker. >> reporter: wall street, 80 years ago. know who was there? irving kahn. when were you born? >> december 19, 1905. >> reporter: he rang the opening bell at the new york stock exchange on his 100th birthday. that was six years ago. how has wall street changed during your life? >> well, when i got to the street, it was much more a rich man's game. not that i was rich. but i mean, it was designed for banks, for insurance companies, or railroads, or public

utilities. it's no longer a rich man's business. it's a business for everybody. >> reporter: do you still watch the stock market very closely every day? >> well, i have the bloomberg, which is right here. i don't watch it because i'm not a trader. >> reporter: you're a value investor. >> right. and i stick to the 20-odd stocks that i hold. >> reporter: who is your idol? >> vin graham. >> that's warren buffett's idol too. >> and a lot of other people wish they could do what he did. >> he works every day. >> reporter: what do you think is to thank for your father's longevity? >> i would say that the fact that he has an office to go to, and a job, and responsibilities, is extremely important. >> reporter: do you think that you will live to be as old as your father has so far? >> well, let me ask. am i going to live -- >> reporter: and do you want to?

you didn't always have bloomberg term nals, right? >> no. i was very lucky being born in 1905. i was just in time for a lot of new technologies. radio, television. >> reporter: do you have a cell phone now? >> yes, i do. this is it. i don't use it much, except to remind myself what my number is. [ laughter ] >> reporter: i see. but irve doesn't think that technology necessarily makes things easier when he looks at the gadgets his grandson, andrew, uses. >> reporte >> he also has to know how to work the ibook. you have to interrupt me, otherwise i talk too much. [ laughter ] >> sometimes it is too much, when it comes to technology. and you can do the old-fashioned way just like irving kahn. that was poppy harlow reporting in new york.

early tests on a popular baby formula are back. we'll tell you if some batches of enfamil were found to have dangerous bacteria. and the gifts are unwrapped, but surprises still await some holiday travellers trying to return home. we'll look at what parts of the country are facing travel delays. we'll be right back.

a look across the country now. police in grapevine, texas, say three men and four women were shot to death on christmas day. they may have been opening gifts when they were killed. the apparent murder-suicide happened at an apartment outside of dallas. officials believe all the victims were related. the seven victims total. officials in nevada suspect arson in the blaze that heavily damaged a post office on sunday. about 800 people get their mail there. investigators also found bullet holes and anti-government graffiti on the walls, and federal agents are joining the investigation into this one. and there is a new multimillionaire in maryland. lottery officials say the winning ticket for saturday's $125 million powerball jackpot was sold at wesley's restaurant and lounge. >> one of my employees talked to him, and he said he got the ticket here. and they asked him the number

again. and said i'll be in about two days to see you. i want everything to settle down a little bit. >> i hope it's somebody that really needs the money. it's a lot of money. it will change their lives, for the better i hope. what a great christmas present. >> 100 times less money than that would change their life. it's the day after christmas, and some are returning home from their travels. some will find delays and frustration. rob mars marciano has a look. where are we finding delays? >> newark. but nothing like we saw last year at this time. remember the day after christmas, that monster snowstorm that just crippled much of the northeastern corridor? we are not seeing that today thankfully. san francisco as mentioned, hour delays right now. newark seeing 30-minute delays. we had a bit of light snow across upstate new york and northern new england. but compared to last year, there was a lot of brown and green as

far as what you're seeing. some slight snow flurries across upstate new york right now. temperatures in d.c. and new york right around 40 degrees or so. cool front just coming through. behind that, fairly tranquil weather. but a decent storm system developing across the gulf states and it will combine with something coming out of canada. as those two come together, we'll see some interesting weather developing over the next 36-48 hour. right now, just rain across northeastern texas, much needed. getting into parts of louisiana and mississippi. if you're traveling in those states, mostly rain. but as this thing gets into colder air tonight and tomorrow morning, western p.a. up through upstate new york and northern new england once again will be the spots they'll see some snow accumulating potentially on the roadways. so tonight, again into -- or tomorrow and into wednesday morning is when we're looking for this to be the bulk of the action here. temperatures will remain mild. temperatures in the 40s. across chicago, that's unusual. and storm track finally taking shape across the pacific northwest. hala, that will be the problem spot not only today but over the

next several days after a fairly quiet december. the past few days have ramped up in what is typically a very stormy area this time of year. >> thanks, rob. we'll see you later. it's the time of year when everybody makes lists of the best and the worst. the nba lockout has got to make the 2011 sports list. get your list together. and we'll give you a chance to see if it matches ours. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind. ♪ [ male announcer ] the citi thank you card. earn points you can use for travel on any airline, with no blackout dates. i'm forty eight years-old, i love to swim, and i love to walk outside. osteo bi-flex has really helped my knees.

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well, it was the surprise of a lifetime for a young man with muscular dystrophy. lane mullins asked for a star wars bunker. the make a wish foundation made sure he got it. here's today's giving in focus. >> we're in virginia. population, about 200. i think we're going to double that population today. >> we are making magic. >> today is all about lane.

>> reporter: lane's 11 years old. he has muscular dystrophy. my son made a wish with the make a wish foundation. they approved to build him a star wars fort. >> detail is incredible. >> and they are making that happen today. >> no, just flip it. it'll be fine. >> what do you think? >> it's pretty cool. i mean, there's a lot of people with storm trooper skout armor. i don't know how many kids have an indoor bunker in their backyard. i'm a little jealous. >> he has no idea. it's super exciting that so many people came together to do something for someone they don't know. >> am i in heaven? am i dead? >> this is going to be the only house with a star wars bunker.

it's heartwarming. everybody is like an angel to us who has done this. it's just so much goodwill. we are following many developments in the next hour of "cnn newsroom." let's check in first with our political editor, paul steinhauser. >> well, hall a, i'm here in des moines, iowa. we are eight days away from the caucuses here. we've got the cnn express. i'll have details of the latest polls at the top of the hour. >> reporter: i'm mohammed. as international observers begin to arrive in syria, activists there tell us that the government's brutal crackdown continues. i'll have the newest amateur video of scenes of today's violence at the top of the hour. >> i'm barbara starr in washington. a cyber attack that has the national security community on edge. i'll have details coming up

next. >> thank you, everyone. you played a major role in documenting the biggest news of 2011. the news that in 2011 made history. next hour we will bring you the best of your ireports for 2011.

well, here's a quick look at sports for you. if you were too busy wrapping

gifts or eating to watch football on christmas eve, you might have missed this. check out this touchdown at the 2-yard. simpson does a front flip not end zone and has a finish that would make some gym nists jealous. cincinnati won the game and might have the highlight of the year. the nba kicked off its season on christmas. chicago and l.a. went right down to the wire. derrick rose hits this, let's see it, high arching shot with time winding down. kobe bryant comes back with a chance to win but the shot is blocked at the buzzer. the bull's get a christmas win, 88-87. the nba lockout was one of many sports controversies of 2011. cnn's mark mckay looks back. to call the season

tumultuous is an understatement. something the head coach tried to cover up. a booster for the university of miami said that over the span of eight years he spent millions on hurricane players, including paying for prostitutes, but at penn state the transgressions were far worse. >> reporter: jerry sandusky is charged with molesting eight boys. >> where were the authorities? >> this is not a case about football, it's not a case about universities, it's a case about children who have had their innocence stolen from them. >> reporter: a child sex abuse scandal involving former penn state assistant coach jerry sandusky resulted in the firing of head coach joe paterno and a legacy that was six decades in the making is in shambles. bernie fine an assistant basketball coach at syracuse for the past 36 years was fired after allegations emerged that he molested children. in the nfl and nba we saw owners and players fighting over billions of dollars while the

rest of the country suffered through economic hardship, and there was tragedy on the racetrack when indy car driver dan wheld den was part of a 15 car crash. it cost him his life. we also said good-bye to smoking joe frazier, one of the greatest heavy weight champs of all time. amidst all the darkness there were stories and@leads to celebrate. aaron rodgers emerged from the shadow of brett far of to lead them to a title. the mavs went to a title. a 33-year-old head coach led 11th seed virginia commonwealth university to the final four. college basketball's grandest stage. a 23 year old from iowa won the u.s. open and made many ask tiger who? a leks si thompson at 16 became

the youngest player ever to win an lpga tournament. >> who could forget the story of david freeze who grew up in st. louis rooting for the cardinals and led them to a world championship. he was the series mvp. those are some of the stories that reminded us why we watch. mark mckay, cnn, atlanta. another hour of newsroom. the holidays are winding down and the presidential campaign is once again heating up. one week from tomorrow, tuesday, the iowa caucuses will mark the first formal votes in the 2012 presidential race. it is too close to call right now. you can see it in the graphic according from a poll from the american research group. paul romney and gingrich are looked in a three way statistical ty. the other candidates are in single digits. they have 12% undecided.

paul steinhauser is in des moines with more on these results. a little more than a week away from the caucuses. hi, paul. >> reporter: eight days away now from the caucuses. they kick off the primary caucus calendar, hala, i've got to say the weather is pretty mild. no snow. mid 40s. this is not late december weather for iowa. usually a lot colder, a lot more snow. that poll you mentioned, it also indicates about one in ten likely iowa kuk cuss goers is undecided. a bunch say i'm backing this one or that one but i could change my mind. check this out, this story has got to be ron paul. this is the "des moines register." could ron paul win? his numbers have been rising here and nationally. he ran four years ago. it's a different story this time around. it seems like when it comes to some of the positions he was on four years ago he was on the fringe. now his positions are starting to be front and center of the republican party, hala.

>> let's talk about the ads because candidates often pledge that they won't go negative, but we have been seeing some pretty negative ads in iowa, haven't we? >> reporter: we've seen some interesting stuff here. remember, it was just a couple weeks ago that newt gingrich was the front-runner here in iowa. some of the ads have been a little tough on gingrich. take a look at some of the ads on iowa tv. >> if you really want to know how a person will operate, look at how they've lived their life. i think that's why it's so important to understand the character of the person. to me that makes a huge difference. maybe some voters it doesn't, but for me it makes a huge difference. >> i'm anita perry. when rick's tour of duty as a captain in the air force ended he returned home to farm with his dad and asked me to marry him. we grew up in small towns raised with christian values. >> you know what makes barak obama happy, newt gingrich's baggage. he has more baggage than the

airlines. >> reporter: isn't that interesting? we're starting to see the candidates' wives in the ads. both of them tauting their husband's family values and their -- it's interesting. maybe they're trying to compare to newt gingrich. the other one was an independent ad going after newt gingrich. 's coming under attack a lot, hala, in iowa. >> we'll see what impact that all has. paul steinhauser is in des moines. still ahead, viewing the iowa caucuses from the inside. approving king maker discusses who he likes, who he does not like, and who will see the future take shape in a couple of days. this reminder, tune in a week from tomorrow for the country's first real votes and true tests for the candidates. live america's choice 2012 coverage of the iowa caucuses. 7:00 p.m. eastern.

a team of outside observers heads to syria today in the midst of a bloody crackdown. activists say there's more blood shed, more violence and scenes like this, tanks, opening fire in the streets. while we can't verify the video, the syrian government is not allowing us back in to syria, but it's all part of renewed government brutality that has reportedly left 13 people dead so far today according to activists. mohammed is tracking the latest developments. >> reporter: as the syrian government crackdown intensifies, the first of a small group of outside observers is beginning to arrive in da mass cass. we have no idea if the arab league observers will be able to get to the scenes of violence that continue to pour out of syria. here a tank rolls down a street.

a neighborhood in the flash point city of homs. activists say thousands of troops are surrounding it and shelling it almost daily. cnn can't verify many of the videos posted from syria. one resident describes the carnage he's witnessed explaining how everyone has become a target. in the last two days there is a lot of injury. more than 200 injury in the last three days. they executed little children because they shout against the assad. they bombing one house, civilian house. >> reporter: in the past week the syrian gft's bombardment has escalated. the same day a protocol was signed allowing those arab league observers into syria, activists say the syrian army stormed the town, a part of id

lan province. this shows loved ones mourning those who died. residents of id lib have become accustomed to the violence. many fear to bury their dead in public cemeteries. in this video taken in november some buried their loved ones near a deserted road. at a hospital one injured demonstrator lace in his bed and tells of the horrors he's seen. >> translator: i've seen wounded people taken by security forces with their oxygen masks still on, he says. >> reporter: another man describes a crackdown he experienced. >> translator: i was injured by gunfire in a protest, he says. security forces fired on us and injured many youth and one was killed. i went to a hospital and was treated. >> reporter: with many syrian neighborhoods deserted and besieged, many people are now questioning how effective the arab league observers' mission

will be. >> aim joined live from cairo right now. the situation right now, mohammed, we're hearing of up to 21 people killed in homs alone. this is as the arab league monitors are in the country according to activists. >> reporter: that's right. very disturbing news out of homs today according to the activists that we've been speaking with. they say at least 21 killed. hundreds injured. at the same day they are expected to arrive, they're wondering how effective they can be. we're seeing scenes purporting to show more violence there today. these are clips that have been posted to youtube. one shows an alley way where there are houses that purportedly are under attack. people screaming, god is great, from inside the houses. there's another video posted showing a tank roaming through the street according to activists shooting. this is some of the video posted.

very disturbing videos. the more and more we talk to activists inside of homs and syria, they use words like carnage and bloodbath. they say this crackdown that they allege has been going on is absolutely unrelenting and they need help right away. >> i know many people in the united states, mohammed, were looking at the situation in syria and say, what can be done? they're hoping that this arab league delegation at the very least will come back and report on some of the carnage taking place that activists are telling us about, but will this delegation, as criticized as it's been, be allowed into places like homs? >> hala, that's the key question. we've spoken to members of the arab league today. they say that members of this observer's mission, that they will travel to homs tomorrow. they're hearing that they may go to cities like idlib where crackdowns and massacres have reportedly happened. what are the parameters of their mission? we still don't know. even if they get to these

cities, will they be able to go to the neighborhoods that have been hardest hit by the crackdowns? will the syrian governmental low them free rein? what exactly will they be able to do? members of the syrian national committee and members of opposition groups have said repeatedly, that they want them to go to these homes to stop a genocide from possibly happening. >> i've been speaking with sources who recently left syria who said the economic situation is starting to become more and more disastrous without the oil to power generators, food prices going up. this is something we're going to keep a close eye on as well as the u.s.'s approach to the unfolding crisis. let's talk about nigeria. the u.n. is condemning a christmas day bomb tlg. a string of blasts targeted churches in five cities and it left dozens of people dead or wounded. there were similar attacks on churches last year's christmas season. zain verjee is in london.

zain, tell us about these attacks, specifically about churches on a very holy day for christians, of course. >> reporter: exactly, hala. this is the second time in two years this has happened. it's widely being reported that the group boco haram is claiming responsibility. that's translated into western education is sinful. this is a group that western agencies have kept their eye on. they have increased in sophistication in their attacks. they're better coordinated. essentially they have loosely founded themselves on the taliban in afghanistan and their goal is to impose saria law across all of my gear yeah one of their biggest concerns is that they'll continue attacks like this and fuel sectarian violence in the country. in fact, people are saying one of the ways they've been able to fund themselves is by robbing banks recently. there has been a whole spate of that that's been going on in the

last few months. they've been flashing much more with police and security forces in nigeria. abouga is on alert. they're sending out texts to people saying, be careful, more attacks are coming. >> zain verjee, thanks very much. a group of hackers is bragging about stealing confidential information from a global security group. credit card information, other sensitive info could be in their hands right now. they hacked stratfor. we'll have a live report coming up. and a working vacation for the president and first lady. we'll tell you about their christmas day visit with the troops. stay with us. is it because taking a step represents hope? or triumph? at genworth, we believe in taking small steps every day to keep your promises, protect what matters, and prepare for a secure financial future. no matter where you want to go, one step at a time is the only way to get there.

go to genworth.com/promises.

a look at news from across the country now. police in grapevine, texas, say three men and four women, seven people total shot to death on christmas day. police say they may have been opening gifts when they were killed. it was an apparent murder/suicide. it happened in an apartment outside of dallas. officials believe the victims were all related. in nevada officials expect arson in a blaze that heavily damaged a post office on sunday. about 800 people get their mail there. investigators also found bullet holes and some antigovernment graffiti on the walls. federal agents are joining the investigation into the arson there. in maryland there's a new multi-millionaire. lottery officials say the wing ticket for sat's $125 million power ball jackpot was sold at wesley's restaurant and lounge. >> one of my employees talked to him. he said they got the ticket here

and they said -- he said in about two days i'll see you. want everything to settle down a little bit. >> i hope it's somebody that really needs the money. it's a lot of money. it's going to change their lives, for the better, i hope. but a great christmas present. well, let's count down to the caucuses, everyone. just eight more days until iowa hosts the first formal vote of the presidential season. for candidates it's a critical test. momentum can be seized or squaund derd. our next guest can tip the scale. steve desae is host of a syndicated talk show. he endorsed mike huk ka bein 2008. steve, a lot of people believe that helped him win the iowa caucuses. he joins us. who are you endorsing this time around? >> you know what, i'll tell you when i figure it out. i'm just as undecided as a lot

of the voters are. i think i'm ready to endorse hute bakporum. i'm hoping i could come up with the perfect alternative for barak obama. i think a lot of people, myself included. they see things they like in almost all of the candidates which makes the decision-making process more difficult. >> you must be leaning more towards one of the candidates, no. >> i would say i would be leaning towards a few candidates. there's things i like about michele bachmann, rick santorum, newt gingrich and ron paul. i really haven't had a chance to get to know rick perry very much. i think maybe his campaign has done him really a disservice in iowa. he got off to a bad start. his television ads he's running are a big hit. i think they've helped him rehabilitate his image. >> you just mentioned rick perry. tomorrow you're hosting a

prolife, this will be on the radio and tv, it's called a pro-life town hall meeting. who will take part in this? >> michele bachmann will be there along with rick santorum, rick perry and newt gingrich. we will have four of the republican candidates taking questions from pro-life activists and voters around the country on my show. >> how important will it be, do you think? i imagine you're going to tell me it's going to be important since it's your program. historically it has been, who you decide to endorse has had an impact. will this have a big impact? >> i think it'll have an impact on my decision-making process, like it will most eye owe juans. keep in mind that the prolife voes is the most loyal voting block in the iowa caucuses. they are definitely going to come out en masse. what we don't know if they will come out en masse for one candidate like they did huk ka be four years ago or whether

they will come out splintered. >> you don't like mitt romney much, do you? you told the des moines register, i would need to hear the audible voice of god telling me to vote for mitt romney to go in that direction. what don't you like about mitt romney and why would god have to enter the picture and tell you who to vote for at this stage? >> well, to me, i think elections ought to be about candidates who have differences with one another. as donald wildman of the american family association put it on my show last week, if mitt romney's the no, ma'am any, it's obama versus obama light. he beat obama. it's government enforced health care. $50 government paid abortions. his report record of opposing reagan bush, the bush tax cuts, he was for amnesty, for gun control. do you have an hour? we can continue. >> no. >> this guy is the quintessential rockefeller

republican. >> so is he invited to this pro-life town hall or is he not invited? >> the folks that are sponsoring this, personhood, u.s.a., they invited all of the presidential candidates and the four that i mentioned earlier, gingrich, bachmann, santorum, perry, those are the four that rsvp. >> thank you for joining us eight days from the caucuses. the race won't just be decided by power brokers and political ads. mother nature could have a big vote. in fact, the 2008 iowa caucus winner predicts that next tuesday's outcome could be decided by the weather. >> if the weather is good, mitt romney is in better shape. if the weather is bad, and it's tough to get out, ron paul will win. rob marciano can answer that question. you're a meterologist and you can possibly redikt the winner

of the iowa caucuses. >> we'll see how those come together, hala. right now it's mild. there's no snow which is fairly rare. temperatures have been well above average. the reason being is the jet stream has pretty much kept most of the rain and the cold air, at least the cold air, bottled up in canada. if we get the jet stream to dip a little further south, that will get the weather back to what it's known for. january 3rd, tuesday, that's over a week away. to forecast that far in advantages, you'll obviously look at patterns. you look at computer models and some going further up are pretty good. outside of three or five days, you have to take it with a grain of salt. iowa caucus forecast. we have december 31st. that's new year's eve at 12:00 p.m. the white is indicated by clouds and the colors indicates precipitation. we'll run the clock and we'll stop it at 9:00 on new year's day. we've got something coming along the mid section of the country.

this is a cold front. how strong it is and the timing of it, you've got to give or take basically 24, 48 hours. there's something come through the iowa area january 1st or so. that will be of interest. the question is how strong will it be? the odds are it's not going to be that strong even if it does come through. temperatures typically in the morning are at 16 degrees. the forecast for january 3rd in the 20s. forecast high expected to be above the freezing mark, which will be eight or nine degrees above average at this time. odds are it's going to be on the mild side which at least the long-range forecast would boed well for mitt romney. >> it's very mild here as well from what i gathered at 5:00 a.m. in the morning. we'll talk with you a little bit later for more. so it's like christmas part two. the post-holiday blitz for sales and returns. retailers hope it'll be a black monday today. and a hacker who call

themselves anonymous are getting a lot of attention again. their latest target, this website. we'll tell you what they're after.

well, between the returns and the sales, some analysts say today could be the third biggest shopping day of the year, and stores really hope that it will be. alison kosik is live outside macy's in new york city. so, allison, is it as busy as shops and stores are hoping that it will be today? >> you know, it's not as busy as black friday was per se, but you know what, it still feels like christmas here.

the music playing. the salvation army bell is going off. retailers are probably reveling in the fact that people are still pouring in and shopping. what people are really going for are those discounts. case in point, jasmine who i ran into, she is definitely on a mission armed with her coupons as she walked into macy's. jasmine, why shop after christmas? >> because you end up saving loads of money, like these coupons have $10 off. >> reporter: you're not shopping for everybody else. that's sort of a factor in it, isn't it? >> you're shopping for your friends. after christmas it's all about you and saving money. >> reporter: you're from london. how important is it to get a good deal here today? >> really important. yeah. >> reporter: and are you finding that you're finding deals this week? i know you've been here this week. >> yeah, i found a great deal today. i went up to get some material girl jeans by madonna and they were $36 cut down to $19.

with the coupon i got them for $13. >> reporter: she said that's a find. you can't find these in london. can you find that. enjoy your shopping. that's what a lot of these retailers, hala, are banking on, that a lot of these consumers will go for the deeper discounts. the fact is, the retailers, they want to push out the merchandise that's still on the shelf. guess what, spring is just around the corner even though it doesn't feel like it today, hala. >> no, it sure doesn't. thanks very much, alison. newt gingrich's campaign says it may have experienced a pearl harbor moment. why newt gingrich did not qualify for the virginia primary. our political buzz panel sounds off about what this means for newt gingrich 2012 right after this.

what is it about taking a first step that we find so compelling? is it because taking a step represents hope? or triumph? at genworth, we believe in taking small steps every day to keep your promises, protect what matters, and prepare for a secure financial future. no matter where you want to go, one step at a time is the only way to get there. go to genworth.com/promises. with two children and no way to support them. people told me i wasn't going to do anything.

and i just decided i have more to offer than that. i put myself through nursing school, and then i decided to go get a doctorate degree. university of phoenix gave me the knowledge to make a difference in people's lives. my name is dr. kimberly horton. i manage a network of over a thousand nurses, and i am a phoenix. [ male announcer ] find your program at phoenix.edu.

checking top stories now. five people are dead, another 39 hurt after a suicide bomber struck a security check point right outside of iraq's compound. dozens of people have died since forces left iraq just over a week ago. also among the stories we're following, this just devastating situation in the philippines. more bodies are washing ashore there after brutal tropical storm. the number of dead now tops 1200. the japanese government was not ready for the fukushima nuclear disaster, neither was the power company. that's according to a new interim government report slamming the response to the tsunami in march saying workers weren't properly trained and that the government hesitated too much when it came to

people's safety. political buzz is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. three questions and 30 seconds on the clock. playing with us today, political analyst and culture critic goldie taylor. pete dominick and cnn contributor will cain. first question, mike huckabee is not a weather man. he's making weather predictions about the iowa caucuses now just eight days away. he says he thinks romney will win but bad weather could turn the outcome in favor of ron paul. so what does romney need to do to turn his fair weather fans into actual votes? all right. let's start with will. >> you know what, i think mike huckabee's exactly right on this. ron paul fans we know are extremely intense, extremely passionate. they're least the postal service. they'll come out in hale, sleet, snow, internet chat board. they're there for him.

while mitt romney's the default candidate. default candidate you look outside, it's cloudy, the hell with it, i'm not going out. i think mitt romney can't change his strategy. all he can do is be there for them when they reject their front-runner for the moment. >> goldie, your thoughts. >> well, i think huckabee should probably get a job with the psychic friends network because he's probably right on the money with this. ron paul supporters, as you say, they are extraordinarily loyal, extraordinarily passionate. they're going to come out no matter what the weather is. however, the romney supporters, yeah, they are a bit soft. it's just going to be tough for him to win in a place like iowa when you've got somebody like ron paul doing the job. iowans just don't trust mitt romney. >> pete? >> well, what can mitt romney do to win in iowa? he should listen to huckabee because he won there in 2007.

maybe romney could wager $10,000 with iowaiscarriage r primary voters. huckabee won there mainly because he's evangelical. romney, that's going to hurt him there. ron paul does have those really, really excited voters. i think it's going to be tough. romney's just not exciting. we'll see. >> less mormony. >> new word. >> rob marciano is forecasting mild weather. if what huckabee said holds, we might have some insight. virginia primary voters won't see newt gingrich on their ballots. he missed the deadline to get the 10,000 signatures to secure his spot. now his campaign director is comparing the flub to paerl harbor, the attack that drew the united states into the second world war in 1941.

so the question is is newt gingrich organized enough to be commander in chief in your opinion, goldie? >> nope. >> okay. next. no. >> this is like a book tour gone awry. at the end of the day he bombed his own harbor. how do you not organize your own state? that's a real probably for newt gingrich and it's going to be a problem for him in iowa, florida, heck, it'll be a problem for him in every state he faces. you have to organize. >> will, interesting to compare your campaign and any setback to world war ii and the ally's fight against nazi germany. what do you think snnchts i don't think that's a very historically appropriate analysis for the historian. it's not like pearl harbor. i do think virginia rules are somewhat odd. we're going to have a situation where five of the seven republican candidates won't be on the ballot. mitt romney versus ron paul, that's it? that being said, the rules are the rules. they're not knew. everybody knew them.

if newt gingrich can't organize enough to get on the ballot, well, you can't sit there and complain to the refes, knew the? that's the deal. how are you going to be orlged enough to be commander in chief. >> pete dominick, organized enough or not? >> he's organized at selling books. i think he already sold as many as he can in virginia so he doesn't really care about that. this pearl harbor analogy, i'll use a newt word, is profoundly disrespectful to the families and victims. it's still terrible. listen, the reason why people in virginia, he didn't get on the ballot there, people know him and he's from there. people who know newt gingrich don't like newt gingrich. i'm talking about republicans like tom coburn. people who know him don't like him. the fact that he didn't get on the ballot in a state that he lives in, he lives there, means he's sold enough books there. >> your buzzer beater, everyone. 20 seconds each. donald trump is ditching the gop switching his party to

unaffiliated. are we going to see a donald or eva donald 2012 ballot on the ballot? will, let's start with you. >> this is no big shocker, right? he's unaffiliated now with the republican party. he's affiliated solely with himself. that's a big shocker. that should set us all back. no, we're not going to see a donald 2012. i don't know there's enough money in that for him or enough of a benefit where he won't run. that's been the safe bet all along. doesn't matter if we're talking about republican nominee or whatever. the safe bet is he's not going to run. >> goldie? >> three words, federal financial disclosure. he's not going to do that. there is no way on this god's green earth that donald trump is going to tell americans how much money he really does not have. no, he's not running. >> and pete? >> this is always funny. maybe he should change his legal name to the donald, hala. >> first name the, last name

donald? >> exactly. i'd like to see his birth certificate. those are all good points. you could never win the nomination if you have r you have been married three times before and donald has. wait. there was one other. i forget his name. >> i forget it as well. pete, will, goldie, thanks to all three of you. this reminder, tune in a week from tomorrow for the country's first real votes and the first true test there for the republican presidential race. okay. let us take a short break. when we come back, the hackers who call themselves anonymous are getting a lot of attention. once again, their latest target is this website. we'll tell you what they claim to have stolen. you played a major role in documenting history. the best of ireport in 2011. that is coming up later. some amazing images after the break.

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well, there's a hacking group known as anonymous. apparently it's at it again. it claims to have hacked a global intelligence company's website and released the names of clients along with information linked to thousands of credit cards. now this is stratfor, strategic

forecasting, inc. bank of america, lock heed martin, and the defense department are a few of its clients. it says it can provide security a nal liss, projections in conflict zones, among other things. barbara starr joins us to explain the possible fallout. first off, how does a company that provides this type of analysis to its clients about security allow itself to be hacked? >> reporter: well, that is going to be the question, isn't it? i suppose their company cyber experts are going to have to take a look inside their own company to see what's going on. the question will be whether that information was encrypted, of course. you know, we see this kind of thing all the time, don't we now, about credit card data being stolen. that's a concern, but in corporate security for our own personal financial security. this company though, it's pretty interesting. information on 4,000 credit cards. they have both government clients and private sector, corporate clients, companies

that do business in the international business community that want to know about threats and situations around the world. that's the kind of information stratfor provides. they couldn't somehow protect their own data from anonymous, this hacking group. the concern, of course, now is that anonymous appears to be threatening to do more this week during the holiday week. more cyber attacks. that's put the cyber community, including the government, on a bit of edge, hala. >> so what are the hackers saying? what is their motive in doing this? because i understand that some of the credit card information that was allegedly stolen was used to then make donations to ngos, charitable organizations. is this a political message they're trying to send? >> reporter: you know, who knows because we haven't been able to get to anonymous. it does appear to be, doesn't it? they are making these types of donations by all accounts. they are making political

statements about this. cyber crime, cyber attacks, they either appear these days to fall into this political basket of motivations or pure criminal activity, which a cyber attack is. that, of course, is the bottom line, the stealing of financial data. anonymous may be making these statements about making these donations, but as they wreak havoc in the cyber world, the question is this is a crime and what else are they going to do that by all accounts, their accounts, they now appear to have their hands on. >> barbara starr, thanks very much. a christmas tragedy in connecticut. fire ripped through this home. a woman loses her children and her parents. also, you, the viewer, played a major role in documenting history. the best ireports of 2011 coming up.

here's a quick look at news from across the country. in connecticut fire toer through an advertising executive's home killing her three children and both of her parents on christmas morning. she made it out alive, das a contractor renovating the home. in lebanon, missouri, the mystery surrounding a newborn boy's death is deepening. there was no bacteria in the infant formula. they're testing their own samples. see at sl recovering from a powerful wind storm. you see the aftermath there.

gusts topped 50 miles an hour in some spots. our affiliate kmoa is reporting a nine-year-old girl died when the tree hit the suv she was riding in. well, this year you, the viewers, made a huge difference in helping us report the news that made history. i remember relying so much on some of your images from the arab spring, but also other stories, including the occupy movement. here's the year that was through the eyes of our cnn ireports. >> we're so excited. i'm so proud to be an arab today. for the people of egypt who want to have a better life.

>> whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. >> oh, my god. holy crap. oh, my god, the building's going to fall. >> the whole ground was shaking so much. it was unreal. >> it's something that you would not wish upon your worst enemy. >> reporter: we're currently being escorted by local authorities down to the media here to get close to the palace

as possible. >> congratulations. >> right now information -- >> and it's over. the tyrant is gone. and we are very grateful to you because so many of these

stories are told with your help and grateful, especially to the people in these conflict zones in syria, in libya and other places where it's extremely dangerous to gather this information. but where your images have made it essential, have made it easier for us to understand the full story. 2001 has been a year filled with headlines. we want your input on picking the biggest stories. go to cnn.com/topstories to cast your vote for the top ten stories of 2011. we'll have the list for you friday at 9:00 a.m. right here on cnn. the service men and women are out of iraq. they're enjoying the holidays. we'll take you to one happy homecoming after this. one night britta told me about a tradition in denmark, "when a person dies," she said, "someone must open the window so the soul can depart." i smiled and squeezed her hand.

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president obama spent a quiet christmas with family and friends in hawaii. earlier in the day the first family attended church services on a marine corps base. the president and first lady greeted hundreds of service members as well as their families. they signed a few autographs and posed for photos as well. well, here's proof that christmas magic is not just for the young. here is army sergeant brenda beatin stepping down from sarn at that's sleigh. she surprised her mother. she hopped a ride aboard a

parade float and made sure the procession came to a halt in front of her mom. >> i just got back from iraq two weeks ago. i told my brother i was i'm going to come home and not tell mom. it was big. it was a big surprise. >> i could have fallen through the ground. well, her elderly mom said she didn't want to celebrate christmas without her daughter. we're told they had quite the family celebration on sunday. cnn photo journalist mike green captured the sites and sounds of more homecomings from iraq. >> welcome back. >> good luck to you, brother. >> the families are really the power behind the war effort. thank you very much because it's your sac kris fies and service that makes it all possible. >> thank you for bringing him home safely. >> the families need to hear

that we appreciate as senior leaders their sacrifice and service. >> it was an honor to serve. >> this is 8.5 years of combat and training the iraqi forces. it's the end of 21 years of involvement in iraq. operation desert shield, desert fox, operation iraqi freedom, operation new dawn. that's the real message to america is this is not just the end of 8.5 years, it's 21 years of involvement in that country. >> you're the last guy. what do you think? >> glad to be back in the gold oel u.s. of a. >> the race in iowa may be tight, but what about new hampshire? well, it's not as tight. how far ahead is mitt romney? we have results of a new poll coming up in our political ticker. i won't go without it for my high cholesterol and my risk of heart attack. why kid myself? diet and exercise weren't lowering my cholesterol enough.

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it looks like newt gingrich won't be on the primary ballot in his home state of virginia. both gingrich and rick perry failed to collect the 10,000 signatures needed to qualify. cnn political editor paul steinhauser joins us live from des moines iowa this morning. paul, virginia is an important super tuesday state. it's where newt gingrich actually lives, okay, so what is the impact going to be on his campaign? >> reporter: well, let's say it's a two-person or

three-person contest by early march on super tuesday. every delegate matters of course if it's a close contest. it could hurt since gingrich will not be on the ballot in virginia. who is on the ballot? ron paul and mitt romney. they're the only two candidates who were able to get on. virginia has a high threshold. you need 10,000 sikts. gingrich was in virginia last week. had he two events on wednesday night and again on thursday. thursday was the deadline to get on the ballot there. he came close. didn't make it. neither did texas governor rick perry or any of the other candidates other than paul and romney. gingrich this morning asked about it outside his house this morning in virginia. listen, we made a mistake. not going to happen in virginia. hala, it's kind of a sign that newt gingrich over the last month has jumped, has risen in the poles. his campaign structure hasn't followed suit and matched. >> okay. let's talk about -- okay. so we've discussed over the last

several hours, paul, that it's a statistical dead heat in iowa. looking ahead to the new hampshire primary which is still 15 days away, there's a new poll out there. what does it tell us? >> reporter: it shows the same old story. we've seen it for two years now. take a look at this. "boston globe" came out on christmas morning. romney way ahead of everybody else at 39%. romney has been the front-runner for a long time in new hampshire. why? remember, he was governor of neighboring massachusetts. he owns a home in new hampshire. he spent a lot of time campaigning and helping other republicans in new hampshire. 's very, very well known there. if romney doesn't do well here in iowa, a lot of people say new hampshire needs to be his fire wall. there's gingrich and paul at 17%. huntsman is at 11%. he's placed all of his chips in new hampshire. take that poll and throw it away. whatever happens right here in iowa on january 3rd could greatly impact what happens in